Influences of maternal mental illness on psychological outcomes for adolescent children

Abstract

The research literature associating maternal mental illness with problematic mental health outcomes of adolescent children typically controls for neither the effects of family stresses and lack of support, nor the effects of parenting style. To address this gap, we explore the effects of maternal psychiatric symptoms and community functioning on child outcomes in a diverse sample of seriously mentally ill women caring for their teenaged children. In hierarchical multiple regression, for youth depression, we find effects for parenting style and maternal mental health; for youth anxiety and efficacy, effects involve the interplay between maternal symptoms and community functioning.